The survival of dense secondary atmospheres around temperate rocky planets orbiting low-mass red dwarfs remains an important open question. Here we show that the thermal phase curves of TRAPPIST-1 b and TRAPPIST-1 c, measured with the James Webb Space Telescope at 15 mu m, are consistent with bare rocky surfaces rather than thick atmospheres. TRAPPIST-1 b exhibits a high dayside brightness temperature (490 +/- 17 K), no significant nightside emission and no phase offset-features indicative of a dark, airless surface. TRAPPIST-1 c shows a cooler dayside (369 +/- 23 K) and a similarly cold nightside, consistent with either a tenuous, oxygen-rich atmosphere or an equally airless, more reflective surface. Models with surface pressures above similar to 1 bar are strongly disfavoured for both planets. These results suggest divergent evolutionary pathways or atmospheric loss processes despite their similar compositions.

One of the forefront goals in the field of exoplanets is the detection of an atmosphere on a temperate terrestrial exoplanet, and among the best suited systems to do so is TRAPPIST-1. However, JWST transit observations of the TRAPPIST-1 planets show significant contamination from stellar surface features that we are unable to confidently model. Here, we present the motivation and first observations of our JWST multicycle program of TRAPPIST-1 e, which utilize close transits of the airless TRAPPIST-1 b to model-independently correct for stellar contamination, with the goal of determining whether TRAPPIST-1 e has an Earth-like mean molecular weight atmosphere containing CO2. We present our simulations, which show that with 15 close transit observations, we will be able to detect this atmosphere on TRAPPIST-1 e at Delta lnZ=5 or greater confidence assuming we are able to correct for stellar contamination using the close transit observations. We also show the first three observations of our program. We find that our ability to correct for stellar contamination can be inhibited when strong stellar flares are present, as flares can break the assumption that the star does not change meaningfully between planetary transits. The cleanest observation demonstrates the removal of stellar contamination contribution through an increased preference for a flat line over the original TRAPPIST-1 e spectrum, but highlights how minor data analysis assumptions can propagate significantly when searching for small atmospheric signals. This is amplified when using the signals from multiple planets, which is important to consider as we continue our atmospheric search.

We present a ground-based transit detection of HIP 41378 f, a long-period ($P = 542$ days), extremely low-density ($0.09 \pm 0.02$ g cm$^{-3}$) giant exoplanet in a dynamically complex system. Using photometry from Tierras, TRAPPIST-North, and multiple LCOGT sites, we constrain the transit center time to $T_{C,6} = 2460438.889 \pm 0.049$ BJD TDB. This marks only the second ground-based detection of HIP 41378 f, currently the longest-period and longest-duration transiting exoplanet observed from the ground. We use this new detection to update the TTV solution for HIP 41378 f and refine the predicted times of its next two transits in November 2025 and April 2027. Incorporating new TESS Sector 88 data, we also rule out the 101-day orbital period alias for HIP 41378 d, and find that the remaining viable solutions are centered on the 278, 371, and 1113-day aliases. The latter two imply dynamical configurations that challenge the canonical view of planet e as the dominant perturber of planet f. Our results suggest that HIP 41378 d may instead play the leading role in shaping the TTV of HIP 41378 f.

LP 890-9, also known as SPECULOOS-2 and TOI-4306, is a nearby late-M dwarf hosting two confirmed transiting rocky exoplanets. We analyze 20 JWST/NIRSpec PRISM transits of LP 890-9b and LP 890-9c obtained as part of GO program 7073 and detect statistically significant transit timing variations (TTVs), with peak-to-peak amplitudes of 17 s and 35 s, respectively. Using analytic linear TTV theory, we find that the known two-planet configuration cannot reproduce the measured TTV amplitudes or super-period, whereas three-planet models provide substantially better fits. The best-fit configuration places the candidate third planet, LP 890-9d, between planets b and c, with an orbital period of 4.4 days; however, the current data do not uniquely determine its orbital architecture, and periods spanning 4.0-6.9 days remain plausible. TESS is insensitive to transits of LP 890-9d and we find no evidence for the candidate in JWST observations, although the phase coverage (ranging from 50

The TRAPPIST-1 system is well-known for its seven transiting Earth-sized exoplanets. It has been extensively studied and characterized, notably with transit timing variations (TTVs) to precisely measure the mass of the planets. Using near-infrared spectroscopic observations obtained as part of the SPIRou Legacy Survey and the NIRPS Guaranteed Time Observation programs, we aimed to verify those values through radial velocity (RV) measurements of the system. Our RV analysis reveals that the current data do not have the precision required to individually detect the TRAPPIST-1 planets. However, we confidently detect (Δln𝒵=7.53, 1860:1 odds) the combined RV signature of the planets by informing their relative masses on the TTV analysis, with TRAPPIST-1 b as a proxy of the whole system. For the first time, the RV signal of the TRAPPIST-1 system is recovered: we find a RV semi-amplitude of K_b=3.65^+0.78_-0.83 m s^-1 corresponding to a planetary mass of M_p, b=1.31±0.29 M_⊕, demonstrating that the RV measurements are consistent with the TTV model (M_p, b; TTV=1.374±0.069 M_⊕). Additionally, the NIRPS RVs constrain the presence of giant planets beyond the snow line, excluding Saturn-mass planets out to 2.7-yr orbits and Neptune-mass objects out to 20 d. Through RV, we determined the stellar activity period to be of 3.22^+0.22_-0.20 d. Its agreement with photometric measurements (K2 and TESS) confirms stellar rotation as the origin of the ∼3.3-d periodicity observed for TRAPPIST-1. We further investigated stellar activity with SPIRou polarimetric measurements, placing an upper limit on the longitudinal field (|B_l|<40 G, 3σ). This limit is compatible with a weak multipolar large-scale magnetic geometry, as observed in some of the later-type rapidly rotating M dwarfs.

We report JWST/MIRI 15 $μ$m phase curves of TRAPPIST-1 b and c, revealing thermal emission consistent with their irradiation levels, assuming no efficient heat redistribution. We find that TRAPPIST-1 b shows a high dayside brightness temperature (490 $\pm$ 17 K), no significantly detectable nightside emission ($F_{\rm b, Night, max}$ = $39_{-27}^{+55}$ ppm), and no phase offset -- features consistent with a low-albedo, airless ultramafic rocky surface. TRAPPIST-1 c exhibits a lower dayside brightness temperature (369 $\pm$ 23 K), and a nightside flux statistically indistinguishable from that of TRAPPIST-1 b ($F_{\rm c, Night, max}$ = $62_{-43}^{+60}$ ppm). Atmosphere models with surface pressures $\geq$1 bar and efficient greenhouse effects are strongly disfavoured for both planets. TRAPPIST-1 b is unlikely to possess any substantial atmosphere, while TRAPPIST-1 c may retain a tenuous, greenhouse-poor O$_2$-dominated atmosphere or be similarly airless with a more reflective surface. These results suggest divergent evolutionary pathways or atmospheric loss processes, despite similar compositions. These measurements tightly constrain atmosphere retention in the inner TRAPPIST-1 system.

Discoveries of giant planet candidates orbiting white dwarf (WD) stars and the demonstrated capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope bring the possibility of detecting rocky planets in the habitable zones (HZs) of WDs into pertinent focus. We present simulations of an aqua planet with an Earth-like atmospheric composition and incident stellar insolation orbiting in the HZ of two different types of stars-a 5000 K WD and main-sequence K-dwarf star Kepler-62 (K62) with a similar effective temperature-and identify the mechanisms responsible for the two differing planetary climates. The synchronously rotating WD planet's global mean surface temperature is 25 K higher than that of the synchronously rotating planet orbiting K62, due to its much faster (10 hr) rotation and orbital period. This ultrafast rotation generates strong zonal winds and meridional flux of zonal momentum, stretching out and homogenizing the scale of atmospheric circulation, and preventing an equivalent buildup of thick, liquid water clouds on the dayside of the planet compared to the synchronous planet orbiting K62, while also transporting heat equatorward from higher latitudes. White dwarfs may therefore present amenable environments for life on planets formed within or migrated to their HZs, generating warmer surface environments than those of planets with main-sequence hosts to compensate for an ever shrinking incident stellar flux.

Exoplanet transits contain substantial information about the architecture of a system. By fitting transit lightcurves we can extract dynamical parameters and place constraints on the properties of the planets and their host star. Having a well-defined probabilistic model plays a crucial role in making robust measurements of these parameters, and the ability to differentiate the model provides access to more robust inference tools. Gradient-based inference methods can allow for more rapid and accurate sampling of high-dimensional parameter spaces. We present a fully differentiable photodynamical model for multi-planet transit lightcurves that display transit-timing variations. We model time-integrated exposures, compute the dynamics of a system over the full length of observations, and provide analytic expressions for derivatives of the flux with respect to the dynamical and photometric model parameters. The model has been implemented in the Julia language and is available open-source on GitHub. We demonstrate with a simulated dataset that Bayesian inference with the NUTS HMC algorithm, which uses the model gradient, can outperform the affine-invariant (e.g. emcee) MCMC algorithm in CPU time per effective sample, and we find that the relative sampling efficiency improves with the number of model parameters.

Transit timing variations (TTVs) are observed for exoplanets at a range of amplitudes and periods, yielding an ostensibly degenerate forest of possible explanations. We offer some clarity in this forest, showing that systems with a distant perturbing planet preferentially show TTVs with a dominant period equal to either the perturbing planet’s period or half the perturbing planet’s period. We demonstrate that planet-induced TTVs are not expected with dominant TTV periods below this exoplanet edge (lower period limit) and that systems with TTVs that fall below this limit likely contain additional mass in the system. We present an explanation for both of these periods, showing that both aliasing of the conjunction-induced synodic period and the near 1:2 resonance superperiod and tidal effects induce TTVs at periods equal to either the perturber’s orbit or half-orbit. We provide three examples of known systems for which the recovered TTV period induced by a distant perturbing planet is equal to the perturber’s orbital period or half its orbital period. We then investigate Kepler two-planet systems with TTVs and identify 13 two-planet systems with TTVs below this TTV period lower limit, thus potentially uncovering the gravitational influence of new planets and/or moons. We conclude by discussing how the exoplanet edge effects can be used to predict the presence of distant companion planets in situations where TTVs are detected and where nearby companions can be ruled out by additional observations, such as radial velocity data.

Planetary systems with multiple transiting planets are beneficial for understanding planet occurrence rates and system architectures. Although we have yet to find a solar system (SS) analog, future surveys may detect multiple terrestrial planets transiting a Sun-like star. In this work, we simulate transit-timing observations of our system based on the actual orbital motions of Venus and Earth + Moon (EM)—influenced by the other SS objects—and retrieve the system’s dynamical parameters for varying noise levels and observing durations. Using an approximate coplanar N -body model for transit-time variations, we consider test configurations with two, three, and four planets. For various observing baselines, we can robustly retrieve the masses and orbits of Venus and EM, detect Jupiter at high significance (for <90 s timing error and baseline ≤15 yr), and detect Mars at 5 σ confidence (with <20 s timing error and baseline ≥27 yr) using TTVFaster . We also find that the three-planet model is generally preferred, and we provide equations to estimate the mass precision of Venus/Earth/Jupiter analogs. The addition of Mars—which is near a 2:1 mean-motion resonance with Earth—improves our retrieval of Jupiter’s parameters, suggesting that unseen terrestrials could interfere in the characterization of multiplanetary systems. Our findings are comparable to theoretical limits based on stellar variability and may eventually be possible.

The eight-planet Kepler-90 system exhibits the greatest multiplicity of planets found to date. All eight planets are transiting and were discovered in photometry from the NASA Kepler primary mission. The two outermost planets, g ( P _g = 211 days) and h ( P _h = 332 days), exhibit significant transit-timing variations (TTVs), but were only observed six and three times, respectively, by Kepler. These TTVs allow for the determination of planetary masses through dynamical modeling of the pair’s gravitational interactions, but the paucity of transits allows a broad range of solutions for the masses and orbital ephemerides. To determine accurate masses and orbital parameters for planets g and h, we combined 34 radial velocities (RVs) of Kepler-90, collected over a decade, with the Kepler transit data. We jointly modeled the transit times of the outer two planets and the RV time series, then used our two-planet model to predict their future times of transit. These predictions led us to recover a transit of Kepler-90 g with ground-based observatories in 2024 May. We then combined the 2024 transit and several previously unpublished transit times of planets g and h with the Kepler photometry and RV data to update the masses and linear ephemerides of the planets, finding masses for g and h of 15.0 ± 1.3 M _⊕ and 203 ± 16 M _⊕, respectively, from a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis. These results enable further insights into the architecturally rich Kepler-90 system and pave the way for atmospheric characterization with space-based facilities.

Multi-wavelength photometry of brown dwarfs and planetary-mass objects provides insight into their atmospheres and cloud layers. We present near-simultaneous $J-$ and $K_s-$band multi-wavelength observations of the highly variable T2.5 planetary-mass object, SIMP J013656.5+093347. We reanalyze observations acquired over a single night in 2015 using a recently developed data reduction pipeline. For the first time, we detect a phase shift between $J-$ and $K_s-$band light curves, which we measure to be $39.9^{\circ +3.6}_{ -1.1}$. Previously, phase shifts between near-infrared and mid-infrared observations of this object were detected and attributed to probing different depths of the atmosphere, and thus different cloud layers. Using the Sonora Bobcat models, we expand on this idea to show that at least two different patchy cloud layers must be present to explain the measured phase shift. Our results are generally consistent with recent atmospheric retrievals of this object and other similar L/T transition objects.

JWST observations of the seven-planet TRAPPIST-1 system will provide an excellent opportunity to test outcomes of stellar-driven evolution of terrestrial planetary atmospheres, including atmospheric escape, ocean loss, and abiotic oxygen production. While most previous studies use a single luminosity evolution for the host star, we incorporate observational uncertainties in stellar mass, luminosity evolution, system age, and planetary parameters to statistically explore the plausible range of planetary atmospheric escape outcomes. We present probabilistic distributions of total water loss and oxygen production as a function of initial water content, for planets with initially pure water atmospheres and no interior-atmosphere exchange. We find that the interior planets are desiccated for initial water contents below 50 Earth oceans. For TRAPPIST-1e, f, g, and h, we report maximum water-loss ranges of 8.0(-0.9)(+1.3), 4.8(-0.4)(+0.6), 3.4-(+0.3)(0.3), and 0.8(-0.1)(+0.2) Earth oceans, respectively, with corresponding maximum oxygen retention of 1290(-75)(+75), 800(-40)(+40), 560(-25)(+30), and 90(-10)(+10) bars. We explore statistical constraints on initial water content imposed by current water content, which could inform evolutionary history and planet formation. If TRAPPIST-1b is airless while TRAPPIST-1c possesses a tenuous oxygen atmosphere, as initial JWST observations suggest, then our models predict an initial surface water content of 8.2(-1.0)(+1.5) Earth oceans for these worlds, leading to the outer planets retaining >1.5 Earth oceans after entering the habitable zone. Even if TRAPPIST-1c is airless, surface water on the outer planets would not be precluded.

Kepler-51 is a less than or similar to 1 Gyr old Sun-like star hosting three transiting planets with radii approximate to 6-9 R circle plus and orbital periods approximate to 45-130 days. Transit timing variations (TTVs) measured with past Kepler and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations have been successfully modeled by considering gravitational interactions between the three transiting planets, yielding low masses and low mean densities (less than or similar to 0.1 g cm-3) for all three planets. However, the transit time of the outermost transiting planet Kepler-51d recently measured by the James Webb Space Telescope 10 yr after the Kepler observations is significantly discrepant from the prediction made by the three-planet TTV model, which we confirmed with ground-based and follow-up HST observations. We show that the departure from the three-planet model is explained by including a fourth outer planet, Kepler-51e, in the TTV model. A wide range of masses (less than or similar to M Jup) and orbital periods (less than or similar to 10 yr) are possible for Kepler-51e. Nevertheless, all the coplanar solutions found from our brute-force search imply masses less than or similar to 10 M circle plus for the inner transiting planets. Thus, their densities remain low, though with larger uncertainties than previously estimated. Unlike other possible solutions, the one in which Kepler-51e is around the 2:1 mean motion resonance with Kepler-51d implies low orbital eccentricities (less than or similar to 0.05) and comparable masses (similar to 5 M circle plus) for all four planets, as is seen in other compact multiplanet systems. This work demonstrates the importance of long-term follow-up of TTV systems for probing longer-period planets in a system.

It has been theorized that terrestrial planets born beyond 1-3 au could avoid being engulfed during the red-giant phases of their host stars. Nevertheless, only a few gas-giant planets have been observed around white dwarfs (WDs), the end product left behind by a red giant. Here we report on evidence that the lens system that produced the microlensing event KMT-2020-BLG-0414 is composed of a WD orbited by an Earth-mass planet and a brown dwarf companion, as shown by the non-detection of the lens flux using Keck adaptive optics. From microlensing orbital motion constraints, we determine the planet to be a 1.9 +/- 0.2 Earth-mass (M circle plus) planet at a physical separation of 2.1 +/- 0.2 au from the WD during the event. By considering the system's evolutionary history, we determine the brown dwarf companion to have a projected separation of 22 au from the WD and reject a degenerate model that places the brown dwarf at 0.2 au. Given the planetary orbital expansion during the final evolutionary stages of the host star, this Earth-mass planet may have existed in an initial orbit close to 1 au, thereby offering a glimpse into the possible survival of planet Earth in the distant future. An Earth-mass planet is found to have a white dwarf host-the final evolutionary stage of Sun-like stars. This system suggests that terrestrial planets in Earth-like orbits may avoid being engulfed during the red-giant phases of their host stars.

Ultracool dwarf stars are abundant, long-lived and uniquely suited to enable the atmospheric study of transiting terrestrial companions with the JWST. Among them, the most prominent is the M8.5V star TRAPPIST-1 and its seven planets. While JWST Cycle 1 observations have started to yield preliminary insights into the planets, they have also revealed that their atmospheric exploration requires a better understanding of their host star. Here we propose a roadmap to characterize the TRAPPIST-1 system - and others like it - in an efficient and robust manner with JWST. We notably recommend that - although more challenging to schedule - multi-transit windows be prioritized to mitigate the effects of stellar activity and gather up to twice more transits per JWST hour spent. We conclude that, for such systems, planets cannot be studied in isolation by small programmes but rather need large-scale, joint space- and ground-based initiatives to fully exploit the capabilities of JWST for the exploration of terrestrial planets. The JWST has the potential to increase our understanding of terrestrial exoplanets and their atmospheres, but the various signal contaminations need to be isolated and quantified. Using JWST Cycle 1 observations of TRAPPIST-1 as a benchmark, this Perspective proposes a series of steps to use future JWST data efficiently for this purpose.

The TRAPPIST-1 system has been extensively observed with JWST in the near-infrared with the goal of measuring atmospheric transit transmission spectra of these temperate, Earth-sized exoplanets. A byproduct of these observations has been much more precise times of transit compared with prior available data from Spitzer, HST, or ground-based telescopes. In this note we use 23 new timing measurements of all seven planets in the near-infrared from five JWST observing programs to better forecast and constrain the future times of transit in this system. In particular, we note that the transit times of TRAPPIST-1h have drifted significantly from a prior published analysis by up to tens of minutes. Our newer forecast has a higher precision, with median statistical uncertainties ranging from 7-105 seconds during JWST Cycles 4 and 5. Our expectation is that this forecast will help to improve planning of future observations of the TRAPPIST-1 planets, whereas we postpone a full dynamical analysis to future work.

Seven rocky planets orbit the nearby dwarf star TRAPPIST-1, providing a unique opportunity to search for atmospheres on small planets outside the Solar System. Thanks to the recent launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), possible atmospheric constituents such as carbon dioxide (CO2) are now detectable. Recent JWST observations of the innermost planet TRAPPIST-1 b showed that it is most probably a bare rock without any CO2 in its atmosphere. Here we report the detection of thermal emission from the dayside of TRAPPIST-1 c with the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) on JWST at 15 µm. We measure a planet-to-star flux ratio of 421 +/- 94 parts per million (ppm), which corresponds to an inferred dayside brightness temperature of 380 +/- 31 K. This high dayside temperature disfavours a thick, CO2-rich atmosphere on the planet. The data rule out cloud-free O2/CO2 mixtures with surface pressures ranging from 10 bar (with 10 ppm CO2) to 0.1 bar (pure CO2). A Venus-analogue atmosphere with sulfuric acid clouds is also disfavoured at 2.6 sigma confidence. Thinner atmospheres or bare-rock surfaces are consistent with our measured planet-to-star flux ratio.

Transit timing variations (TTVs) are observed for exoplanets at a range of amplitudes and periods, yielding an ostensibly degenerate forest of possible explanations. We offer some clarity in this forest, showing that systems with a distant perturbing planet preferentially show TTVs with a dominant period equal to either the perturbing planet's period or half the perturbing planet's period. We demonstrate that planet induced TTVs are not expected with dominant TTV periods below this exoplanet edge (lower period limit) and that systems with TTVs that fall below this limit likely contain additional mass in the system. We present an explanation for both of these periods, showing that both aliasing of the conjunction induced synodic period and the near 1:2 resonance super-period and tidal effects induce TTVs at periods equal to either the perturber's orbit or half-orbit. We provide three examples of known systems for which the recovered TTV period induced by a distant perturbing planet is equal to the perturber's orbital period or half its orbital period. We then investigate Kepler two-planet systems with TTVs and identify 13 two-planet systems with TTVs below this TTV period lower limit – thus potentially uncovering the gravitational influence of new planets and/or moons. We conclude by discussing how the exoplanet edge effects can be used to predict the presence of distance companion planets, in situations where TTVs are detected and where nearby companions can be ruled out by additional observations, such as radial velocity data.

The first James Webb Space Telescope observations of TRAPPIST-1 c showed a secondary eclipse depth of 421 ± 94 ppm at 15 μm, which is consistent with a bare rock surface or a thin, O2-dominated, low-CO2 atmosphere. Here we further explore potential atmospheres for TRAPPIST-1 c by comparing the observed secondary eclipse depth to synthetic spectra of a broader range of plausible environments. To self-consistently incorporate the impact of photochemistry and atmospheric composition on atmospheric thermal structure and predicted eclipse depth, we use a two-column climate model coupled to a photochemical model and simulate O2-dominated, Venus-like, and steam atmospheres. We find that a broader suite of plausible atmospheric compositions are also consistent with the data. For lower-pressure atmospheres (0.1 bar), our O2–CO2 atmospheres produce eclipse depths within 1σ of the data, consistent with the modeling results of Zieba et al. However, for higher-pressure atmospheres, our models produce different temperature–pressure profiles and are less pessimistic, with 1–10 bar O2, 100 ppm CO2 models within 2.0σ–2.2σ of the measured secondary eclipse depth and up to 0.5% CO2 within 2.9σ. Venus-like atmospheres are still unlikely. For thin O2 atmospheres of 0.1 bar with a low abundance of CO2 (∼100 ppm), up to 10% water vapor can be present and still provide an eclipse depth within 1σ of the data. We compared the TRAPPIST-1 c data to modeled steam atmospheres of ≤3 bars, which are 1.7σ–1.8σ from the data and not conclusively ruled out. More data will be required to discriminate between possible atmospheres or more definitively support the bare rock hypothesis.